Investigating the role of 'random walks' in particle diffusion

Several recent experiments identify unusual patterns in particle diffusion, hinting at some underlying complexity in the process which physicists have yet to discover. Through new analysis published in The European Physical ...

Building better diffusion models for active systems

In normal circumstances, particles will follow well-established random motions as they diffuse through liquids and gases. Yet in some types of system, this behavior can be disrupted—meaning the diffusion motions of particles ...

New tools reveal prelude to chaos

Picture a herd of sheep or cattle emerging from a shed or barn to graze a field. They head straight out of their digs to the pleasure of the pasture pretty much as one entity, but as the land opens up and the "grass gets ...

IBM scientists demo rocking Brownian motors for nanoparticles

Today, our IBM Research team published the first real world demonstration of a rocking Brownian motor for nanoparticles in the peer-review journal Science. The motors propel nanoscale particles along predefined racetracks ...

Tumble-proof cargo transporter in biological cells

ver wondered how a molecular nanomotor works when repairing DNA or transporting material such as organelles in the cell? Typically, nanomotors move along biopolymer filaments to go about their duties in the cell.  To do ...

The physics of salad dressing

Researchers at the University of Tokyo have shown that in phase separation in liquids, as is seen when oil and water separate, occurs as a result of the ordered motion of droplets. Initially, a great number of small droplets ...

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